‘Long-Delayed Justice’: Sean Coffey, L’87, and Jonathan Lee, L’90, Lead Exoneration Efforts for WWII Black Sailors

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‘Long-Delayed Justice’: Sean Coffey, L’87, and Jonathan Lee, L’90, Lead Exoneration Efforts for WWII Black Sailors

On July 17, 1944, just after 10 p.m., two U.S. Navy ships loaded with ordnance to be transported to the Pacific theater during World War II exploded at Port Chicago Naval Magazine near San Francisco. Of the 320 men who died instantly, 202 were African American.